Raspberry Crush
by iPepsi
Summary: Tori learns the hard way that Jade always has an agenda, and she prides herself on being two steps ahead of the target at all times.


_AN: I put way more time into this than I meant to, but it simultaneously feels like not enough. If that makes sense? Anyway, this is a one-shot that should probably be a two-shot. It will take at least two months before I can make promises for a second part though. I owe some credit to 2 of my Tumblr buddies for proofreading this and offering their input. They helped make it better than the first draft. Use the review button if you want to let me know how I'm doing._

**Raspberry Crush**

Trina and Tori were left alone at their house for the weekend, so they extended an invitation to their friends to come over that Friday night for what was intended to be a small get-together, but soon became a full-on party after Rex announced it on The Slap. Considering their father is a cop, Tori went into complete panic mode when the alcohol started flooding in, but Trina was all over the place without a care in the world except getting their peers' attention. By the time her actual friends arrived, Tori could barely make a path to greet them. She had shot a couple of them an emergency text, so they already knew to expect a crowd.

Andre was the first to speak up when they managed to reach each other.

"I brought a pizza since I figured all these people cleaned out your snacks. But some dude just ripped it out of my hands back there," Andre explained, pointing over his shoulder.

Robbie, who was right behind Andre and in front of Jade and Cat, looked on with disappointment as a couple jocks scarfed it down.

"I have no idea what to do, guys! Who even are half these people?" Tori asked anxiously.

"I think I recognize a couple of these peeps from Northridge," Rex replied.

Cat had already taken off and was dancing between a couple people from their school. Jade finally chimed in.

"Where do your parents keep their liquor, Vega?" Jade asked in a bored tone.

Tori looked at her incredulously.

"There's no way I'm stealing alcohol from my parents, Jade."

Jade taunted Tori with what she liked to call her _Vega Voice_, "My name's Tori Vega, I would never do anything my mommy and daddy would spank me for..."

"My parents do not spank me...and I don't sound like that!" Tori snapped.

Jade sneered, shoving her roughly as she strode away.

"Whatever. I'll go find it myself."

Tori slipped past Andre, following Jade as she headed for the kitchen. By the time she caught up with her, Jade had already poured herself some whiskey.

"Would you please put it back?" Tori pleaded.

"Allergic to adventure, are we?" Jade asked, eyebrow raised in a challenge.

Tori glared at her, annoyed, and snatched the nearest drink from the counter. She chugged the first half without hesitation, not bothering to read the label. Jade, however, still only looked amused rather than the shock Tori was hoping to see.

"Raspberry Hard Cider? That's an insult to alcohol if you ask me."

Tori set it back down, scowling,."I don't see you offering to share the Jack."

"I wasn't aware you needed an invitation to drink your parents' stuff, Vega" Jade shrugged, casually, downing a shot.

When she began to pour another, Tori grabbed it away from her and downed it just as swiftly. She grimaced, unprepared for the taste since she had never tried hard liquor before. Jade took a swig from the bottle while examining the other contents of the cabinet.

"Here's a step up from your cider," Jade teased, handing Tori a three-quarters full bottle of Smirnoff raspberry-flavored vodka.

Tori twisted off the cap, and began tipping the bottle toward her mouth with curiosity. She instantly found pleasure in the taste, the cool liquid tingling down her throat differently than anything she drank before. Deliberating with herself, she decided to risk taking a couple larger gulps. Her arms began to feel tingly while a fuzzy screen began to invade her mind. She peeked over at Jade who was sipping from a new glass. There was a bottle of rum and a 2 liter of Coke placed on the counter that she hadn't noticed before.

She continued scanning her surroundings, suddenly remembering where they were and what was going on that wasn't supposed to be.

"Dammit," Tori mumbled under her breath.

Jade looked up from her drink and raised an eyebrow. "What was that, Vega?"

"I said _dammit_!" Tori shouted, voice nearly lost over the blaring music.

Jade, who was comparably sober, chuckled to herself as she poured them both another drink. Tori drank it reluctantly, not wanting to completely lose herself while her house was being invaded by strangers.

"You need to lighten up, Tori. Even if your folks find out, you can always blame Trina. Lord knows she'll take credit for this at school anyway."

Tori kept nodding her head although she couldn't understand what Jade was saying. She was aware of who was around her, the buzz of conversations behind her, and of Jade calling her by name; a rare occurrence. It was almost like a bonding moment, but the substances were taking their minds farther away as they remained physically close.

"Why isn't Beck here," Tori wondered aloud, remembering that she had invited him earlier.

"We got into a fight again, like the ones we were having before we broke up. He wanted to get back together. I told him being friends was working for me just fine."

Jade put the bottles away, deciding her buzz was strong enough to get her through the evening without the risk of a blackout in the morning. It wasn't memories of things that happened while drunk that she wished to forget. It was memories from earlier that day she could do without.

"You know Alyssa Vaughn called him the other day, right? He told her he would get back to her this weekend," Tori recalled.

They slid to the floor, leaning against the counter and out of sight from most party-goers. Tori couldn't believe Jade was opening up to her, even if only a little.

"Why would I care? We're over. Besides, I'm the one who rejected him."

Tori watched as Jade picked at her nail polish, her expression remaining neutral.

"It's just weird thinking of you two being apart is all," Tori admitted.

Jade glared at her, lips pursed in irritation.

"You don't know everything," Jade replied, her voice trembling in a failed effort to sound casual.

"I know that Beck loved you," Tori insisted.

"...I tried to love him back."

Jade was staring fixedly at the ground, body rigid. Tori looked at her, trying desperately to understand what she was feeling.

"I uh...guess it's hard to know when you're in your first relationship. I mean, it's not like I really knew if I loved Danny or not." Tori looked at Jade sympathetically, but her expression that appeared in return was surprisingly frustrated.

"Beck wasn't my first relationship. Only my first boyfriend," Jade corrected, sighing exasperatedly.

Tori's look of confusion didn't surprise Jade, because she knew Tori' impaired mind would need a minute to process what she had said. Impatient, Jade leaned over and gave Tori a peck on the lips, hoping that would demonstrate the point faster. She knew it worked when Tori's eyes grew wide, narrowing quickly.

"I...I..whoa. You're not straight?"

Tori stopped, noticing the fury in Jade's eyes at the question.

"I'm so sick of everyone's goddamned labels!" Jade exclaimed, kicking an empty beer can in frustration.

Tori panicked, aware that Jade wasn't the type to calm down easily. She prayed what she said next wouldn't get her buried alive.

"Jade," Tori whispered.

"What, Tori?" Jade questioned with a slight venom to her tone.

"Do you wanna dance?" Tori asked quickly, panic forcing all other thoughts from her mind.

"Depends...how much more missing liquor are you ready to explain to your parents?"Tori stood up and hooked her hand around Jade's left wrist, tugging slightly.

"C'mon, there's too much on your mind...and mine."

Jade gave in and let Tori help lift her up off the floor.

They were soon mixed up in the crowd and losing themselves in the music. When a grind song came on, Tori grabbed Jade's hands without hesitation and lifted their arms above their heads, bringing them closer together.. Their breasts made contact, and Tori caught Jade glancing downward.

"My face is up here, you know," Tori explained with an accusing tone.

Jade rolled her eyes, backing away to create more space between them.

"Give me a break, Vega. Like you're one to talk."

"What's that supposed to mean?"

"The amount of times I've caught you staring, you'd think there were magnets between my cleavage and your eyes. I bet you can't even tell me my eye color," Jade challenged.

"Pink and perky?" Tori joked.

Tori noticed a grin play across Jade's face before she was able to stifle it.

"Your gay is showing," Jade announced as the next song came on, grinning wickedly.

"I thought you weren't into labels, Jade," Tori shot back, smirking in return.

"There's a lot of things I'm not into, Tori, doesn't mean I can't poke fun at the stereotypes, and how they'd have you wrapped in a rainbow flag in a split second."

"So what, is that your next move? Tell the whole school that I'm a lesbian?"

"Please," Jade scoffed, "did you forget what school we go to? If anything, that would just make people love you more."

Tori caught a glimpse of jealousy on Jade's face, but she couldn't place the source of it. She let her curiosity take the lead, abandoned the crowd of dancing drunks, and headed for the stairs. Jade soon followed behind as they climbed to the second floor.

When she pushed open the door to her bedroom, two people were making out on her bed. She yelled at them to get out, and one of them was about to tell her off until they noticed Jade standing behind her. Knowing her reputation, they fled without another word.

Tori sat down on the edge of the bed and motioned for Jade to join her.

"What was that look all about?" Tori asked, wanting nothing more than to know what was on the other girl's mind.

"What look?"

"You know what look. The one where you clearly resent me."

"Seriously, after how I've treated you all this time, it takes some random look while you're almost drunk before you get the message?" Jade asked, shaking her head in disbelief.

"No, Jade, the message was always clear. I just chose not to believe it until now," Tori explained sullenly.

"I think you should be the one answering questions, Tori. Like why do you sound so disappointed all of a sudden?"

"I wanted you to give me a chance," Tori mumbled, voice barely above a whisper.

"What was that?" Jade asked, leaning closer.

"I said, I wanted you to give me a chance!" Tori yelled, causing Jade to jolt backward in surprise.

"Unbelievable! Everyone else is always either giving you what you want or you're taking it from them...ugh, I can't stand you!" Jade shouted, leaping off the bed and coming to a halt in front of Tori.

Tears began to form in Tori's eyes, but she quickly wiped them away.

"I'll admit it. I...I struggle with self-control, and...and I'm not proud of what happens sometimes because of it. But...but if you think that everything about my life is per...perfect compared to yours, then you've deluded yourself."

Jade settled beside Tori, opening her arms in a silent question. Tori accepted, leaning into her, and resting her head on Jade's shoulder. Jade let out a sigh, silently admitting defeat and that most of what the hated about Tori was based on assumptions.

"I don't do apologies, Vega, but if I did...I'd probably say I'm sorry," Jade declared, extricating herself from the embrace.

"Does this mean we can be friends?" Tori asked, expression hopeful.

"No," Jade replied, watching as,Tori's smile faded, "it means you can stop pretending you want to be my friend and admit you have a crush on me."

"But...but..." Tori began defensively, before Jade cut her off by bringing a finger to her lips.

"Shh, what have we learned tonight about where delusions get you?"

Tori frowned in defeat as Jade waited with a smirk.

"Fine, I have a huge crush on you," Tori admitted.

"I'm shocked," Jade feigned surprise as she got up, walking toward Tori's bedroom door.

"Where are you going, Jade?" Tori asked as Jade reached for the handle.

"Home. I got what I came for so..." Jade trailed off, as she slipped through the door.

"Wait! What's that supposed to mean? Jade! JADE!" Tori called after her but received no response.


End file.
